We the People, have spoken...

This past Tuesday, the American people stepped up to vote in the mid-term elections, to determine their future for the next few years, and maybe more.

The Republican majority in Congress went into the election with some confidence, yet the inner circles maintained otherwise (which reminds me of India's BJP re-election bid in the last general election which they underestimated the people's real feelings). The GOP's greatest fears were realized when the votes started to be counted Tuesday night. Governors, Senators, and Representatives of the Republican affiliation started losing their seats one by one especially in states where they had built a strong presence.

So what made people change their stance in voting for the GOP in these mid-terms? Well national issues played the major part in the decision making. President Bush's failures with certain policies and with Iraq, along with recent scandals seem to have sealed the fate of the end results.

At the end, the Dems gained control of Congress, splitting the power of the US government. With the House and Senate in Dem hands the GOP now only controls only the presidency. The split control now remains in effect until 2008, the next Presidential election.

A possibility of a lame duck president for the next two years? Perhaps. But Dubya is now doing his best to counter that situation from arising. Today Bush extended an olive branch to the Dems to "work together". This is something similar he had done in Texas, and it worked. Now it is on a national stage, but a little too late.

Some GOP leaders also felt it was time for Bush to make changes. Even Arnold "The Terminator" Schwarzenegger, Governor of "KHALI-FONYA" said that the change was needed , "I think it is good that there are new ideas and new blood because Washington was stuck. They could not move forward, not much was accomplished; I think it was terrible."

Even Bush was taking blame for the defeat. And rightfully so.

Currently Bush is also open to the Dem's suggestions for putting together an exit strategy from Iraq. The departure of the Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, also signals a big change that the Bush administration is looking for in its strategies in Iraq. The resignation came a bit too late in my opinion.

Other policies might be changing too. UN Ambassador John Bolton, who is up for renewal with his position, is finding strong opposition from not only the Dems, but also some leaders within the GOP. The nuclear deal with India, amnesty for illegal aliens, tax incentives, and other issues will come up into question when the new Congress takes over.

The balance of power has virtually been put into 'balance' with this election's results. Bush's final two years in power will be a real challenge for him, as well as the Democrats, as policies and ideologies will be put into question. The general American populace, tired of the Bush adminstration's ineffectiveness, and the constant scare propoganda finally took a firm decision in their hands, and their votes spoke for it.

It will be an interesting conclusion to Bush's tenure as El Presidente.